The _Constitution_ had been at her less than thirty minutes, but all three of her masts had been shot away, and were dragging over the rail by such of the shrouds as had not been cut by the shot of the Yankees. Her hull was knocked into a sieve by the Yankee round-shot. Thirty of these projectiles had penetrated her more than four feet below the water-line. The cool Yankee gunner had watched her rolling her side out of water and then aimed his gun at the copper below the water-line. Out of a crew of two hundred and seventy-two, twenty-three men were dead or mortally hurt, and fifty-six were more or less severely wounded--more than one-fourth of her crew had been hit in that brief time. On the _Constitution_ seven men had been killed and seven wounded, while her hull had scarcely been touched below the bulwarks. The _Constitution_ was ready for an all-night battle. The _Guerrière_ was ready only for the torch. She was “a perfect wreck.” She could not be carried into port and had to be burned. There was no flag flying on the _Guerrière_ when the _Constitution_ returned to her, and so Third Lieutenant George Campbell Read was sent off in a boat to hail her. Pulling under her lee quarter he found Captain Dacres leaning over the rail, and asked him if he had surrendered. According to the careful Maclay the following conversation took place--when Captain Dacres replied: “I don’t know that it would be prudent to continue the engagement any longer.” “Do I understand you to say that you have struck?” asked Lieutenant Read. “Not precisely,” returned Dacres, “but I don’t know that it will be worth while to fight any longer.” “If you cannot decide, I will return aboard my ship and we will resume the engagement,” said the American officer. To this Captain Dacres called out somewhat excitedly: “Why, I am pretty much _hors de combat_ already. I have hardly men enough left to work a single gun, and my ship is in a sinking condition.” “I wish to know, sir,” peremptorily demanded Lieutenant Read, “whether I am to consider you a prisoner of war or an enemy. I have no time for further parley.” Captain Dacres replied with evident reluctance: “I believe now there is no alternative. If I could fight longer I would, with pleasure; but--I--must--surrender.” [Illustration: Sir James Richard Dacres. _From an English engraving published in 1811._] Read continued: “Commodore Hull’s compliments, and wishes to know whether you need the assistance of a surgeon or surgeon’s mate?” “Well, I should suppose you had on board your own ship business enough for all your medical officers,” replied Dacres. “Oh, no,” said Read, blithely, “we had only seven wounded, and they were dressed half an hour ago.”